Louisiana just notched its best statewide performance yet on the 2026 LEAP exams, with 36% of students scoring at Mastery or Advanced, the highest Mastery+ rate on record. That represents a two percentage point gain from 2025 across grades 3 through 12. The results, released Monday, will also be the first LEAP scores folded into the state's new Grow. Achieve. Thrive. accountability system.
What the data show
According to the Louisiana Department of Education's 2026 LEAP results presentation (Louisiana Department of Education), students improved or held steady in 28 of 31 tested courses. The gains varied by subject area: in grades 3 through 8, math rose one point while science and social studies each rose two points. At the high school level, civics climbed five points, English II and U.S. history each rose three points, and Algebra I increased by two points, while English I declined by two points and biology and geometry held steady.
State officials also pointed out that the statewide social studies Mastery+ rate is up seven points since 2023, a shift they link to ongoing work on the new Freedom Framework standards. In other words, the curriculum changes are starting to show up in the scores.
Districts and trends
As reported by New Orleans CityBusiness, almost nine out of ten school systems improved or maintained their overall grades 3 through 12 Mastery+ rates. Roughly three quarters of districts showed year over year improvement, with about 15% seeing declines.
New Orleans CityBusiness also highlights several top performing systems, including Ascension, West Feliciana and Plaquemines parishes, and notes that downloadable school and system level files are available for public review. State leaders told reporters they see the numbers as meaningful progress to build on rather than a finish line.
National context
The gains land as national researchers update their Education Scorecard, which tracks academic recovery across the country. A May analysis by the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard and partners ranked Louisiana first among states for reading growth and second for math growth, finding Louisiana to be the only state that exceeded pre pandemic achievement levels in both subjects, per the Education Scorecard. For many state officials, those findings helped frame the LEAP numbers as one piece of a broader multi year recovery and reform effort.
What comes next
Officials say the 2026 LEAP data will feed into school performance scores later this year under the Grow. Achieve. Thrive. framework and could shift some school letter grades, since the model places greater weight on student growth and post graduation readiness. In a statement to New Orleans CityBusiness, State Superintendent Dr. Cade Brumley said he was proud of the progress but warned that "we cannot be satisfied and must build on this success as we raise expectations." Deputy Superintendent Dr. Jenna Chiasson added that these results "provide educators with a roadmap to strengthen instruction" as districts plan for the fall.
